Naruto and Sakura - Meant To Be
by Ivy Arts
Summary: Naruto and Sakura were meant to be. They both end up going on a mission to the Sound village. Naruto and Sakura cared deeply for one another, but they never thought that they would feel something deeper than just friendship. They can't help but to fall in love. - In Progress, RE-UPDATED! -
1. Chapter 1 - A New Mission

**A/N:** Hi everyone! This is my very first fanfiction, so please don't be harsh on me. I decided to rate this fanfiction mature because of the inappropriate language and scenes that might occur. I wanted to write and share this story because it bugs me that in the real anime, _apparently_ NaruHina makes sense. That's bullshit - and that's all I have to say to that. I'm a huge fan of NaruSaku and I hate what happened to the story, - So I wanted to make sure I make my own Naruto ending in my own Naruto world.

**Update from 2017; Re-upload:** _Anyone wondering what happened throughout the last year of me not updating anything? Well, I figured it's time I told you; I was re-editing. A lot. Almost every chapter that has been uploaded before went through a lot of changes. Now, before anyone starts panicking, there are two reasons as to why did I decide to do this. First off, my writing style has changed so much in the last two years and I want this story to be as polished as possible. The other reason is plot holes. That's right. There are a lot of them. Back when I first started I was only experimenting with the story, but as time went on, I knew what I wanted to do with the story, but that didn't fit with some parts of the plot. I won't lie, a lot has changed, but the direction of the story overall really hasn't. I hope no one gets too confused about this and I hope my older viewers won't be mad._

Also, now I have a Beta too! Shout out to my man Logan Locke for always being there to help and advise me! :)

Well, now that that's out of the way, I really hope you enjoy this chapter and the whole story overall!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto, because if I did, I'd make sure it had the proper ending it deserved.

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**Naruto and Sakura**

**Meant to Be**

**Story by Ivy Arts**

**Chapter 1**

It was winter. A slow ending of one cold winter. The Village Hidden in the Leaves was buried in snow.

Naruto never favored this time of the year as he wasn't a fan of the cold. About a month passed since he had first arrived at the Leaf, saved Gaara and met Orochimaru at the Tenchi bridge. He was now on a mission break as Lady Tsunade ordered.

March was ending, but it was snowing regardless. The weather was stalling everyone and was part of the reason why he was currently on a break. From the way it seemed, it wasn't going to change by the end of the week. At the moment, a typical spring would be ideal for him. At least he wouldn't have to sit at home all day and do absolutely nothing; like right now.

Truth be told, he loved spring. He missed the way sun shined and a soft breeze blew. Everything was always so refreshing and lively. He really couldn't recall any downsides of the season. Not to mention all the cherry blossoms across the Leaf that would bloom in the spring too, completing the atmosphere.

_Cherry blossom..._

Sakura Haruno. No wonder the whole topic reminded him of her. Anyone could see they were good friends, but some individuals could see far beyond the blond's act. To Naruto... she meant so much more. Even after three years apart from his home, his feelings for her haven't changed.

„Sakura..." He muttered in thought. Three years had been a long time and even if he didn't feel like it was before, he certainly knew it now. And he knew now how time can change people. As for Sakura... it was like she stayed the same, but somehow matured so much. Could it be that they were just growing up? He couldn't register the feeling all that well and no one could blame him. After all, three years can only do so much.

The blond got up from his bed and walked over to the window. He leaned on the windowsill and looked outside, watching the wind blow throughout the streets of the village.

„Damn it, I hate this..." He muttered, looking past the buildings. It was true, he hated being indoors all day. It was irritating and boring as all hell.

There was sudden knocking on the door and Naruto's thoughts were quickly cut off. He looked up to his apartment doorway. Someone really must have gone out of their way to get to him, otherwise they surely wouldn't be walking in the cold snow all the way here. The knocking repeated itself once again as he went for the door.

„Yeah, I'm coming!" Naruto yelled as the knocking continued. When he finally opened the door, he was greeted with a familiar face of a specific silver-haired jonin.

„Hey." The other person greeted.

„Kakashi-sensei? What are you doing here?"

„A simple 'hello' would be nice once in a while." He said, his expression blank.

„Yeah, whatever." He muttered, looking to his side, then back up at him. „So, what's up?"

„Lady Hokage sent me to inform you about your next mission, It's urgent." He said in his usual tone.

„What?" He looked up, surprised. „Not that I'm complaining or anything, but we're on a mission break, she told us-"

„She told us to get a break and wait for further orders." Kakashi said simply. The blond crossed his arms, leaned on the door frame and looked out the street.

„It's weird that it came out of the blue is all..." He sighed. „Anyway, wanna come in? It's freezing out here." He offered and Kakashi nodded. They both entered his apartment and Naruto closed the door behind them.

„It's... _clean_ in here." Kakashi said as he looked around the rather tidy room. „What happened?"

„I didn't have much to do, so I decided to kill some time." The blond explained as he walked over to his small dining table. „You can sit down if you want to." He pointed to the chair next to the table as he passed it, heading for the kitchen.

„Want something to drink?"

Kakashi looked in his direction, waving his hand. „I'm good."

„Suit yourself." In the next moment, he came back from the kitchen while drinking a glass of water.

The sensei sat down. „I'm gonna get straight to the point. You and Sakura are going on a B-rank mission to The Sound Village."

As soon as he heard that, Naruto gagged and almost choked on the water he was drinking.

„What?!" His voice cracking, he looked at his sensei in disbelief.

Kakashi raised his brow and just looked back with amusement at his former student, who was coughing up water.

The blond then cleared his throat. „Shouldn't there be at least four team members on a mission like this? Is really a genin like me and a chunin going to be enough?" He asked as his sensei looked out the window.

„Your ranks don't really matter all that much in this case. Most shinobi are getting load up with missions because everyone was slacking off last week, so there are very few available shinobi at this point."

„What about you and the other teams?"

„I'm also going on a high ranked mission soon, and other teams have already been assigned to other tasks." The silver haired sensei explained. „As of the situation at hand, you and Sakura are the only suitable ninja for this mission."

Naruto sat back. „Alright then. So, what's our objective?"

„There is a three-man group in the Sound village, they're on a hunt for forbidden ninjutsu." He said. „They extract ninjutsu from other shinobi by performing some kind of a ritual-like jutsu. Their way of doing things is quite disturbing - their methods consist of mental and physical torture, threatening, rape and even murder. The thing is; they aren't interested in common techniques, but rather more advanced ones, which presents a great threat. They also target only those with precise chakra control. Some shinobi have already lost their ability to summon chakra because of these incidents."

„That's awful..." Naruto muttered, a slight trace of horror on his face. „And messed up." He added.

„It is, I know." Kakashi said, taking a pause. „And your mission is to gather as much intel as you can about them. While it is important to put an end to them, I advise you not to take them on directly. Judging from their skills, we suspect they might be out of both your and Sakura's league."

„Okay, so all we have to do is spy on them?" Naruto asked.

„Well... in a way." He said.

Naruto raised a brow in question.

Kakashi sighed. „Well, there is another reason why you have a woman going with you."

„Huh?"

The silver-haired jonin rubbed his temple. „Well..." He stopped for a second „To be blunt, Sakura's job is to gather intel and manipulate them through seduction. Unfortunately, it's the most efficient way."

There was complete silence as the blond stared at him. A moment passed until he widened his eyes and shock came upon his face

„What?!" He slammed his hands on the table as he got up. „_Seduce them_?!"

„Calm down, you'll be there, remember?" Kakashi said.

„But-!"

„It's not _that_ kind of seduction." He looked straight at him. „As a woman, she's simply going to have more advantage over them. Certainly more than a man would." Naruto sat back in his chair, his face still obviously tense. „But," Kakashi added. „there's a catch."

„We've proven that most of our info about them has come from just this method. As they like drinking and gambling, they could easily be found in any kind of a bar. It's very risky in her case since they might recognize her abilities. She's a known medical ninja and Lady Tsunade's apprentice. To top it off, she has _incredible _chakra control." He explained. „Remember what I said about precise chakra control?"

„Shit."

„You get the point." Kakashi said. „It's risky, but it's urgent. Tsunade would have sent somebody else if anyone was open, but that's not the case. That's why she sent you with her. She knows she can count on you to keep Sakura safe."

He couldn't believe this.

„Did Sakura really agree to this?"

„As far as I know."

„What if something goes wrong? What if I can't protect her from three high class shinobi? Did anyone even consider that?" Naruto's voice rose with each question.

„Naruto, everything's a possibility on a mission like this." The jonin said. „But Lady Tsunade wouldn't have assigned you to this mission if she wasn't entirely sure you could do it." He reassured him.

The blond hesitated for a moment before sighing. „I... I'll do my best, but I just don't want Sakura to suffer if I end up failing."

„You won't fail." The jonin smiled reassuringly behind his mask.

The blond took a deep breath. „Well, let's hope anyway."

„That's the spirit." Kakashi nodded in approval and reached for his pocket. He took out a small picture. „This is the only photographic evidence we have of them. Find them and by providing us with more direct intel, you will increase the chance of us putting an end to them sooner."

„Understood." Naruto nodded quietly and took the photo. No matter how much Kakashi tried to convince him, he was still going to be worried as hell. „When are we leaving?"

„Sunset, in front of the main gate. You should start packing now as you're probably going to be away for a few days." The silver haired jonin got up and stood for a moment before taking his leave.

„Just be careful. Who knows what might happen to Sakura if she falls into their grasp. So... Good luck."

He was gone in the next moment.

Naruto was still as a rock. _So much for the final reassuring..._ Frustration built up inside him and he let out a groan.

„Just what in the hell have I gotten myself into?"

**Continued in chapter 2...**

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**A/N:**I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! It's more of a tease to what the real story is, rather than a real chapter in itself. This story is going to be really long, so you can have something to look forward to.

Also, from now on you can expect more of a regular uploading schedule. For now, I'm going to be uploading every week, so you can expect the chapters on Fridays. This will go on until I get to chapter 8, just like it was before. After that I'm gonna try to stick to monthly uploads, but I can't promise anything yet!

Expect the second chapter on the 16th of June!

Thank you for reading! Reviews and feedback are always welcome! :)


	2. Chapter 2 - Tough Night

**A/N:** Hello again! I hope you liked the last chapter and didn't have to wait too long for this one. This is where the story _really_ hits off, so enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** No matter how much I wish I did, I still do not own Naruto.

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**Chapter 2**

A certain pink haired kunoichi was slowly walking through the snow and making her way toward the main gate of the village. The sun was setting and it was freezing. She lightly shivered as the cold wind came in contact with her bare shoulders.

Sakura didn't wear anything else beside her usual uniform, not even that darned shinobi raincoat. It got shredded during her last mission and all of her other warm clothes were simple civilian clothes and they weren't anywhere near suitable for missions. She very well knew how important it was for shinobi to wear comfortable and flexible clothes in order to not be slowed down. Sakura was stubborn and could stand the cold if she was forced to. Or so she thought.

She finally arrived at the main gate, yet Naruto was nowhere to be seen and the sun was almost gone from sight. Already irritated as she was, she huffed.

„Naruto... He's late again." She muttered impatiently, then sighed sharply. „I swear, If that idiot doesn't show up-"

„Just who are you calling an idiot?"

Sakura narrowed her eyes and crooked a brow. She turned around and was greeted by the face of her teammate as they locked eyes.

His face was mere inches away from hers.

„Naruto!?" She blinked.

„Hi." He grinned.

She quickly backed up away from him, red in the face. „Geez! Don't ever creep up on me like that again!"

„Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you." He scratched the back of his head. „So, guess who's late this time around." An all-knowing smirk appeared on his face.

„Don't get full of yourself. You were just early." She said.

„As if!" He teased.

She shot him a warning look, but a tinge of playfulness was evident in her gaze.

„Okay, okay!" He chuckled. „Whatever you say, Sakura-_chan_."

Usually Naruto wouldn't use her honorific, especially when they were with their friends or in public, but sometimes because of concern, happiness or any other emotion, it would just come out as natural. He didn't think much of it, but knowing he was actually the only one who ever called her that way made it a bit more special. As far as he knew, she didn't have a problem with it either.

Sakura rolled her eyes at him and his goofy grin. Despite being a complete idiot, he always managed to make her smile, just like he did now. No matter how stupid he was, he was a friend anyone could only wish for and his personality was really something else. She really enjoyed his company, but her pride would never let her admit it though.

Sakura shivered once again. There was no getting around the fact that it was freezing.

„So..." She said while rubbing her shoulders. „Are you ready for this mission?"

„Are _you_?" He asked her back with more of a serious look in his eyes, now remembering his conversation with Kakashi. „Won't be easy for you, that's for sure."

„I can handle myself out there!" She snorted, feeling a bit insulted.

„Oh, really?" He challenged. „Then why aren't you even dressed properly for the snow, Sakura?"

She was startled for a moment, not expecting his comment. She narrowed her eyes in denial. „I-I'm not _that_ cold-"

„Oh please." Naruto rolled his eyes. „It's snowing. You're gonna freeze yourself to death. You better go back and take something warmer to wear."

She shook her head. „I would've taken something with me, but turns out I don't have any proper winter clothes. Besides, there's no point in going back, we'd just waste time. We should get going right away."

„How about you borrow _my_ raincoat?" He arched his brow. „I left it back at home, but I can-"

„I said no." The medic-nin repeated herself, giving him a more of an intense look. „If you don't plan on travelling in the dark, then I suggest we move. There's still a little sunlight, so let's not waste it."

„Seriously?" He groaned. „You're really thinking about traveling like this? Are you out of your mind?!"

„So what? It's not like I'm going to die." She ignored him and pulled at the sleeve of his jacket, leading him to the gate. A playful smile appeared on her face. „Let's just go."

The two left the village and entered the forest, starting their new journey to The Hidden Sound Village. Little did they know, it wouldn't be one they'd easily forget.

* * *

Time passed along with their travels. The sun had set quite a while ago and the moon found its place in the sky. Judging by its position, Naruto could tell it was around midnight. They've come far considering their slow pace, but were still ways from their destination. It wasn't hard to keep up with the trail, but constant knowledge of other shinobi that could be travelling near them had the two on guard ever since they set a foot in the forest.

Naruto looked up at Sakura. He couldn't see her that well as the moon barely provided any light, but her breathing told him how exhausted she was. It was pointless to keep going any further as chances of getting lost in the dark were pretty high. They might as well have stopped right then and there.

„Sakura, we can stop here for the night." The blond spoke up.

She turned to look at him. „I can keep going."

„That's fine," He said. „but it won't do us any good if we get lost. We better rest."

The rosette looked at him for a moment. His serious self was so different from the usual goofy Naruto everyone knew. Although he rarely showed it, he had matured a lot. She was amazed by how rationally Naruto could actually think, but only if he wanted to. She couldn't help but to agree with him this time.

„Alright, I guess I could use a break." She exhaled.

Naruto nodded in agreement and set his backpack down on a tree stump.

„I'll go gather some firewood if there is any around." Naruto said, turning for the woods. Sakura didn't even have time to nod at him as he was gone in the next moment.

She looked down at her feet. Her boots were covered in snow and she could feel the soggy dirt beneath her heels. Deciding she wouldn't want to be sleeping directly on the cold snow, she began clearing it out for the both of them. She finished by the time Naruto was back.

„There's not much of it." He said, dropping the sticks and logs on the ground. „The wood is a bit wet, but it should be able to burn."

„I hope it will," She said, rubbing her palms together. „it's getting really cold."

He nodded his head. „I'll get the fire going right away."

Turning for his backpack, he took out a box of matches. He scratched the match onto the box and it made a spark as it was lit. He lowered the match to the wood and the flame spread over it. Soon enough, crackling sounds emitted from the fire, breaking the silence.

„There." He sat back onto the wet grass. „That should keep us warm for the night."

„Yeah." She replied, setting herself near the fire as well.

They sat there for a while, watching the flames sway and the wood crack. There was an awkward silence and Naruto had the urge to break it. A few minutes passed before the blond looked up at Sakura. From the look on her face, he could tell she was thinking about something. He saw her gazing past the fire, before silently sighing. She seemed quite bothered.

„Is something wrong?" He asked.

„Hm?" She looked up, pulled away from her thoughts. „Oh, it's nothing."

„Are you sure?"

„Yeah." She said, then lowered her gaze. „I guess."

„Did I do something?" The blond protested, raising his brow.

„No, you didn't do anything. I was just thinking about home." She looked up again. „It's my parents. I seem to never get along with them lately. I just had another argument with them before I left and..." She trailed off.

„Is it anything serious?" He asked cautiously.

„I guess it's not." She sighed.

The blond nodded. „I hope you can sort everything out." He smiled and scratched the back of his head. „Heh, I can't really give you good advice, can I? Guess I can't be much of help anyway."

Sakura looked into his eyes, sympathy prominent in her gaze. Naruto had been an orphan for as long as she could remember, so he never got to experience the joy and the struggles of having a parent. She admired him for being able to hold his own so well, even though he had to pay the price of loneliness. Sometimes she envied him, even though she knew she shouldn't.

She smiled. It probably hurt him to talk about these subjects, but he managed to comfort her anyway. „Thanks for understanding, Naruto. I feel better now."

„I'm glad to be of some help at least." He smiled.

„Well..." Sakura got up and stretched her arms, looking around them. „We won't be protected much like this, out in the open. I can take the first watch." She offered.

„You don't need to. We'll be fine." Naruto said. „I already made two shadow clones back when I was searching for wood, they'll keep watch."

Sakura sat back down. „You're sure they're not just going to disappear on us?"

„I'm positive they won't." He replied.

The rosette nodded. „Alright."

The temperature was slowly dropping as the night progressed, even Naruto could feel the chills by now. In the corner of his eye, he saw Sakura moving closer to the fire. She was visibly shuddering. He wondered if she might lower her pride and actually admit that she was freezing.

The blond sighed. He shouldn't be feeling sorry for her, he knew this was going to happen, but he couldn't help it. Even though he ended up being right about her, he still couldn't just watch her freeze herself like that. There was a slight trace of pity in his gaze as he sighed. He really couldn't offer her much beside his jacket, but he figured it would do just fine.

Sakura looked over at him as soon as he started unzipping the orange garment. „Naruto, what are you-?"

And then he handed it to her.

„Here." He said. „I can't keep watching you freezing yourself like that. Just put it on and save us both the trouble."

„But Naruto-" She started.

He gave her a slight smile. „I know you're cold, Sakura. You don't have to pretend. Just take it."

„Naruto..." The rosette studied his face for a moment. „You don't have to do this for me, you'll be cold too."

„Nah, it's fine." He said, shaking it off like it was no big deal. „You need it more than I do anyway."

„...Besides, I have this t-shirt too." The blond pointed to his chest and the t-shirt on it.

„You're so stubborn..." She muttered, looking down at his jacket in her hands. The rosette sighed and slid her arms trough the sleeves and pulled the zipper up her torso. It was a bit bigger than she expected it to be, but she couldn't deny the fact that it was warm.

„Thanks, anyway."

He smiled and gave her a thumbs-up. „No problem!"

Sakura yawned, which reminded her of how awfully late it was. Deciding she'd finally rest, she set herself on the grass comfortably before laying down on her side. Naruto glanced at her, but sleep had already found her. He averted his gaze to the night sky, staying awake for a while longer.

* * *

Sakura squinted her eyes due to the morning sunlight. She rubbed her eyes and took in her surroundings. The sun was high up, it was around noon - had they really stayed up that long last night? She looked around and found Naruto sprawled on the ground a few feet away from her. He was a heavy sleeper for sure. She sighed and crawled over to where he was laying. His hair was a mess, his t-shirt was wrinkled and drool was coming out of his mouth.

„Naruto, wake up. We need to go."

There was no response from him.

„Naruto." The rosette muttered, thinking of a way to wake him up. She blinked, then smiled mischievously before slapping him out of his sleep.

The blond opened his eyes, allowing him to see her crouching beside him. He sluggishly sat up and rubbed his eyes, holding his cheek in the process.

„Was that necessary?" He said with a grumpy tone.

„Sorry." She said, curling her lip into a sly smile. „Had to check If you were even alive."

„I know I sleep like a rock," He said with a dull stare as Sakura stood up. „but I'm pretty sure I won't die from sleep."

„Who knows." She dropped his backpack into his lap, smiling again. „After all, you're the _Number one unpredictable ninja_, are you not?"

„Still the same old Sakura, huh?" He muttered. He was grumpy as hell whenever someone woke him up. Of course, this was no news to Sakura.

The rosette smiled, then looked at the trail ahead of them. They still had at least 6 hours of walking across the small mountain leading to the village. She'd rather take the shortcut and go around the mountain, but they'd be easily spotted by any of the villages' patrols. Two stranger ninjas, going through an off-road path would be quite suspicious, so she wasn't going to be taking any chances.

„We need to get going if we want to make it there before nightfall." Sakura said before glancing at the blond on the ground. „Get up. We have a long day ahead of us."

* * *

The day was sunny with barely any clouds in the sky. Once again, the two were making their way to The Sound Village. Their pace was slow, but reasonable since they were travelling uphill. Luckily, the snow was starting to melt, which was making their journey a lot easier. With a few breaks along the way, they managed to arrive at their destination before sunset. They checked in at the place they were staying at - it was an old run-down inn and it didn't seem like the most luxurious place to stay, but had the lowest prices.

After picking up the key at the counter, they headed for their room. It was a small one, but big enough for the needs of two people - One bedroom and a bathroom. They set their backpacks on the floor next to the door.

„So," Naruto started. „what's our plan of action?"

She began to take his jacket off, which she had ended up wearing the whole day. „Remember those three men we're supposed to take care of? Well, according to our intel, we should be able to get in contact with them tomorrow night at a nearby bar. Until then, we need to survey the area and look around for anything suspicious while not drawing any attention." She explained and handed him the orange-black garment.

„Okay, sounds simple enough." He crossed his arms. „So, what do we do now?"

„I don't know about you, but I need a hot shower." She walked over to her bag and picked it up. „As for you... Well, do whatever you want." The rosette said, heading for the bathroom door.

„Wait," He said. „I can get us something to eat since we haven't eaten much on the way here."

„Well..." She muttered in thought. „You could find a store and buy something. Just make sure it's not expensive."

„Does instant ramen sound good to you?" He looked up at her with a hopeful grin. She playfully rolled her eyes at him and nodded, before shutting the door behind her.

* * *

As soon as the blond stepped out of the inn, he put his jacket on. When he did, he could almost immediately smell Sakura's scent on it. He fought the urge to blush as his heart began to pace. He continued walking. It was a late sunset and even though it was cold, there wasn't any snow in sight.

Unlike his home village, the streets here were quiet and empty. He'd see a few men passing the roads and was disgusted when he noticed how drunk they all were. He remembered the rumors he always heard of this village and how there were lots of rouge ninja living around here. The blond figured the locals knew it wasn't a safe place to be roaming around at night. He also remembered the way everyone stared at him and Sakura when they had first arrived, giving them the dirty looks. Something about the whole place was off.

Naruto stopped when he realized that he had been walking through the village for roughly twenty minutes and hadn't found a single open store. Even the market place was closed. Maybe people really were afraid of going anywhere outside around nighttime. He sighed as he turned back, preparing to tell Sakura the bad news. They would just have to settle with food pills until the morning.

It was really dark by the time he came back to the inn. The blond came up the stairs to their room and was surprised to find it empty. He panicked a bit at first, but then found a note on the nightstand. It was obvious it was Sakura's.

„_Naruto, an hour passed since you left and you still weren't returning. I got worried something happened and I went out searching for you. In case you come back, just wait for me there."_

Cold chills went down the blond's spine as he gripped the paper. He was gone for _an hour?!_

„What the hell was she thinking?!" He cursed before dropping the paper and leaving the room, running through the doorway for the closest exit. After walking around for so long and seeing the village, he could easily picture something going wrong for a girl like her alone out there. He ran through the streets while Kakashi's warnings were storming through his head.

The blond was sincerely hoping he was just overreacting.

* * *

_Meanwhile..._

„I should've kept his jacket..." Sakura shivered. „It's still so cold!"

The rosette looked around the empty street. She was pretty sure she had been searching for him for quite some time now. It was creepily empty and silent everywhere she went and it gave her the chills. She debated weather she should turn back or keep searching, but doubted if it was a smart idea.

„It seems awfully quiet..." She muttered to herself. „Something doesn't feel right."

She continued walking, but in a slower pace, hoping she'd catch a glimpse of anything that might seem out of place. It wasn't long before she was passing next to an unnaturally dark alleyway. She stopped once she looked into it and narrowed her eyes, trying to adjust them to the darkness. Then she sensed a distant chakra signature. It was weak, but it was there. She exhaled as relief flowed through her body.

„There you are." She said, stepping into the darkness. „I've been looking everywhere for you! What are you doing here anyway?"

A few moments passed and the rosette stopped walking as there was no response. She tried to keep her cool as a wave of panic seeped into her body.

„Naruto?" She said. „If you think messing with me like this is funny - it's _not_. We need to get back, it's dangerous to be out here." There was a slight stutter in her voice.

Still no response.

„N-Naruto?" Sakura called again, but in such a quiet tone that it was almost a whisper. There was nothing but silence surrounding her. She gulped and prepared draw a kunai at whoever this person may be.

She was suddenly blinded by a strong light. The rosette had to cover her eyes and her heart rate became rapid. She could sense roughly five chakra signatures coming from all directions while the beaming light, which she could only suspect was a flashlight, was shining into her face.

It was too late to run. She was surrounded.

Arms began to grab at her limbs and she tried to fight back, but the figures outnumbered her. She was pushed to a brick wall while they held her down. Just as she was building up chakra to take them out with her brute strength, the flashlight was thrown to the ground. She screamed, feeling a searing pain flow through her nerves. She recognized the pain and realized she was being electrocuted. Her energy was quickly leaving her body and she was now taking sharp breaths, fighting to stay conscious.

Finally, she opened her eyes to see who her attackers were. The light from the ground was illuminating the bottom of their faces and limbs. They were all men and had hoods over their heads, making it hard to recognize their features. The rosette huffed loudly when she gave up on resisting.

„Let me go!" She demanded sternly, trying to sound as much intimidating as possible.

„Be quiet." The man in front of her said, his voice gruff and low. He was the one who had been carrying the flashlight and the electric shocker.

Sakura looked back at him, fury building in her gaze. „You _don't _want to mess with me."

The man chuckled quietly. „Was that supposed to be a threat? What a joke."

„What's that supposed to mean!?" She yelled in fury, but this time, the man put his gloved hand over her mouth.

„Now you listen to me," He spat. „another sound and you're gonna regret it." He lifted up the electric shocker into her view.

Putting it back into his pocket, he glared at her. „It's nothing personal, Pinkie, but we got orders. We gotta get you somewhere and if you decide not to cooperate, we'll make sure your journey's as painful as possible."

They had barely gotten into the village and they were already targeted? She wasn't about to take any of that. She was going to get out of there, one way or the other. Once the man lifted his hand off her mouth, she frowned at him and spat into his face as she kicked her leg up. Little did he know, she aimed to hit right in the man's groin.

„BITCH!"

Groaning in agony, he fell to the ground. For a moment, a satisfactory smirk appeared on her face. She started fighting back again, but to no avail. They had pinned her to the wall with even greater force. As she was struggling, the man she'd kicked was getting up on his unstable legs.

His fist connected to her head and it banged hard against the solid wall. Sakura winced in pain as her vision spun. A few moments passed before she regained focus and could feel blood running down her scalp. She widened her eyes when she saw the man cranking up the shock volume on the device in his hand. He dove it straight into her forearm.

Sakura screamed so loudly to the point of her throat hurting. She didn't think it was possible for so much pain to be spread all over her body in just a second. The man retreated quickly and she kept gasping for air as her whole body twitched.

The feeling of helplessness and fear surrounded her again. The same feeling she felt in her childhood and the same feeling she felt as a genin. And she _hated_ it. She wished so hard she could just fight them off somehow and run away. She knew it was impossible though, her chakra was drained and her muscles were tensing and shaking on their own. She felt so weak.

„Let's go." The man said and pulled the rosette by the hair, which made her desperately yelp in pain.

She glared up at him, anger filling up her gaze. She wasn't going down without a fight. That's when she started resisting again, but due to her state, her actions just became wobbly movements.

And then she saw someone running toward them. The tiny ray of hope came back to her tired eyes when she recognized the person.

„You all back the hell away from her!"

Never in her life was she more relieved to hear Naruto's obnoxious voice. From the corner of her eye, she could see his enraged expression. As much as she hated having to be saved by him, she couldn't deny his great timing.

All of the men backed up and released their grip on her. The rosette fell to the ground, still unable to move her twitching muscles.

Sakura fought hard to stay awake; her sight was blurry and she could only hear muffled sounds of the men around her engaging into a fist fight with the blond. She felt somewhat relieved once she heard the sounds of the men running away, but was startled when immerse growling came from Naruto. Her heartbeat quickened as soon as she started sensing dark chakra dangerously surrounding him.

She recognized it. It was coming from the tailed beast.

Before she could do anything or process any other thought, she lost all awareness and fell unconscious.

* * *

Sakura felt a cold breeze blowing onto her skin. The air around her was cold, but she herself was not. She squinted her eyes, attempting to open them. She looked up, and could see Naruto's face above her, his eyes looking into the distance. Once she recognized their surroundings, she realized she was nestled in his arms.

She could tell he was heading to the inn just by looking at the already familiar streets. She tried to move some parts of her body, even though her muscles were still recovering from shock. It was then when Naruto noticed her fidgeting and glanced down.

„You feeling okay, Sakura-chan?" Calm blue eyes looked into hers.

„I..." The rosette started to say, but was surprised as to how raspy her voice was. „I can't move."

„You should't try to." He looked up ahead and continued on with his rhythmic walking. „You got really beat back there."

„How did you..." She said quietly. „How did you know I was in danger?"

„It wasn't hard. I'm pretty sure the whole village could hear you scream."

She sighed tiredly. „Was I really that loud?"

„I'd say you were." He looked down at her again. „Good thing I got to you before they..." He trailed off.

„Before they took me away?" She somberly finished his sentence. „How'd you know?"

„Kakashi warned me about the threats we might be facing." He said in a quieter tone. „He told me to keep an eye out on you, as you might be targeted."

Sakura looked to the side, complex thoughts running through her head. „What am I supposed to say to that?"

„You need to be more careful." He said in a harsher tone. „What if I hadn't arrived when I did? Who would've saved you then?"

She looked up at him, her brows furrowing. „What else was I supposed to do?" She rasped out. „You weren't returning for _a whole hour_!"

„Still..." The blond muttered. „God only knows what could've happened to you..."

Sakura stayed silent. He was making a good point, but she hadn't ever been a target before. The word about Tsunade's new apprentice spread as soon as she took Sakura under her teaching. She had been kept off missions for the while she was training with Tsunade and hadn't been on many missions since she became a chunin. She had never faced anything like this before and couldn't have possibly been prepared for what was to come.

Naruto was bothered by her silence. He looked down and saw her pondering her thoughts. He felt bad for reacting so harshly, but he had to make her realize in how much danger she was.

„I'm sorry." He said. „I know it's not your fault, but I got worried and it upset me."

„It's okay. I guess I would've done the same as you." She turned her gaze up at him. It was then when she noticed slight tear marks on his face and neck. „You're hurt, aren't you?"

She could feel the muscles in his arms tense. „It's nothing. It doesn't hurt."

„You're the worst liar." The rosette narrowed her eyes. „I sensed the Nine-Tails' chakra before I passed out. It happened again, didn't it?."

The muscles in his jaw tensed. „I'm fine. I was aware of everything and I made sure it wouldn't take control."

„You don't know how fatal your wounds might be!" She persisted. Her voice was cracking and a tired, but a concerned look appeared on her face. „It was pretty bad the last time it happened. I need to take a look at you."

„And just how do you plan on doing that?" The blond frowned. „You can't move an inch, and besides, I'll heal by the time I wake up."

„You don't know that." She muttered. „You still had to get bandages the last time I healed you."

„I'm telling you, I'm fine." He said. „And besides, I want you to tell me what happened before I arrived. If there's even a slight connection to our enemy, we need to figure it out."

She stayed silent. Her face giving no emotion before she spoke again. „Can we discuss it tomorrow? I honestly don't think I can talk about it right now."

Cerulean eyes looked down at her. It was obvious she didn't want to recall and explain her defeat.

„Sure." He nodded. „What about _your_ wounds? Do you think you'll be fine?"

She looked up. „The muscle shock should go away in a few hours. I'll be more than fine by the time morning comes..." She ended with a yawn.

He kept staring down at her and could see that her green eyes became hazy and her eyelids were drooping. It was only natural for her to be unable to speak much more, she was completely worn out.

„You're exhausted." He said with a gentle voice. „You should just rest for now."

Just when he thought she had closed her eyes for good, she shot them half way open again. „I... I'm sorry. I didn't even thank you for helping me. You ended up having to carry my weight again."

The blond smiled warmly. „You don't have to thank me, Sakura. I don't mind at all. That's just something friends do for each other."

_„Friends, huh?"_ The inner Sakura thought as she closed her eyes. He heard her chuckle a little. „I guess they do."

Sakura's breathing grew slow and rhythmic and he was sure she was asleep. The blond smiled at her sleeping from. He still had some ways to go until he would arrive at the inn. He looked up at the starry sky, so many thoughts storming through his head. At least Sakura was safe as long as he was there with her. He'd make sure she was out of harm's way, no matter what it took.

_„__It was sure one long hell of a night."_ He thought. _„But tomorrow is a new day."_

**Continued in chapter 3...**

* * *

**A/N:** Well, that's that for now. I sincerely hope you enjoyed reading this part, I surely had fun writing it! Anyway, see you next Friday in the next chapter!

Oh, and don't forget to review! I'd love to hear your thoughts and opinions on the current chapters!


	3. Chapter 3 - The Hidden Sound Village

**A/N:** Sooooo... I know this chapter has been delayed and I'm sorry, but college stuff got in the way, you know? Truth be told, this chapter was the most pain in the ass to edit, so I sincerely hope it pays off and you like it. Also, new character names introduced in this chapter (Japanese, of course), their meanings are explained at the end. :P

Anyways, enjoy the story!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

The sun was slowly rising above the horizon and daylight slightly seeped through the curtains of the room. Sakura shifted in her sleep as rays of sunshine hit her closed eyes. She started to wake up, squinting her eyes before the light. Her eyelids felt heavy, but she managed to lightly open them, only to see a blur.

It took her a few moments to recognize the room to be the one she and Naruto were staying in. Once she took in her surroundings, she realized she was in a bed and was covered with a hefty blanket. Her vision now cleared completely. She yawned, trying to remember the events of the night before.

Sakura tried to roll over to lay on her side, but she bumped into something that prevented her from doing so. The rosette looked up in confusion. Her eyes widened once she realized she had bumped into the person beside her.

She shot herself up into a sitting position, her heart beating rapidly and her cheeks turning red. The rosette gulped as she stared at Naruto's sleeping form. His arm was stretched out and she had probably been sleeping in his embrace through the night. To top it off, she could tell by the imprints on the mattress that _she_ had been the one who moved in her sleep over to his side of the bed, _not_ the other way around...

Sakura's cheeks started to match the color of her blouse and she quickly got up from the bed and ran to the bathroom. She locked herself in and leaned against the edge of the sink, sighing in relief.

She was still blushing. She couldn't believe what she had just witnessed; she had been sleeping with Naruto! It wasn't the fact that it was _Naruto_ she was sleeping next to, it was the fact that she was in his _arms_! She would've been completely fine with everything if s had woken up on _her _side of the bed! The medic-nin slapped forehead in a face-palm manner.

She then felt a cloth-like material wrapped around her scalp. The rosette moved her hand away in confusion and then looked at her reflection in the mirror. There was a white bandage wrapped around her head. She blinked as she remembered how she hit her head the day before. One of the men had punched her in the head and she had started bleeding. She knew she didn't patch herself up, which meant that Naruto must've been the one who took care of her.

„Naruto..." Her face softened. He tried to treat her, even though he had no experience in the medical field.

She brought her hand up and touched the back of her head. She winced painfully, confirming that there was still a bruise. In the process of doing so, she also inspected the bandage and found it a bit too loose. „He could really use some work on practicing basic first aid." She whispered to herself, re-tightening the bandage back.

The rosette proceeded to stare at herself in the mirror, slowly taking in her disheveled appearance. She finally pulled away and looked down at her arms. She noticed all the bruise marks from the night before. She frowned, now remembering completely what had happened. She was beat up by only a few men and Naruto had to come to her rescue again. She was definitely upset by the whole event. If she had fought them off, which she should've been able to, it wouldn't have come to her being so helpless and Naruto having to turn into a beast-like state. If it only wasn't for that damn electric shocker...

The rosette then recalled on the wounds the blond had gotten, realizing he was probably still in pain. The night before, he refused to let her heal him because she was incapable to do so. Now that she had recovered, she could properly tend to his wounds. It was her responsibility as a medic, whether he liked it or not.

She looked back at the door. As soon as she'd be done healing him, they'd have to head out.

Sakura unlocked and opened the door, and to her surprise, she saw Naruto sitting up in bed. He was scratching the back of his head and when he realized that she was in the room, he looked in her direction.

„Hey." He greeted her.

„H-Hey..." She scratched her arm, a bit unsure of what to say as all the previous events caught up with her.

„I see you're back on your feet again." He pointed out.

Sakura blinked, then looked down. She completely forgot she was even paralyzed. „I told you I'd be more than fine."

„I'm glad to hear that." The blond smiled.

„So... Did I wake you up?" The rosette asked, sincerely hoping he didn't see the way she freaked out.

„N-No, I woke up just now. I was wondering where you were." He stuttered, then looked away sheepishly. „Y-You're not mad at me, are you?"

„For what?"

„Uhh..." He scratched the back of his head again. „You passed out and I let you sleep on the bed. I-I tried sleeping on the floor at first, but I couldn't fall asleep... Eventually, I decided to climb into the bed-"

„I-It's okay! I'm not upset at all!" She waved her hands in front of herself to show she was completely fine with it, surprised he'd go to such lengths just because of her. Although, she could've done without waking up being snuggled next to him...

„O-Oh, okay." He said, surprised a bit. „I kinda expected you to punch me through the wall or something for doing that."

„In most circumstances, I probably would, but..." The rosette brushed it off, giving him a smile. „If anything, I should thank you. You did bring me back safely and managed to take care of me, after all." She pointed to the bandage.

„Well, your head was still bleeding..." He said. „I didn't know what else to do beside put a bandage around it."

„You did good." She admitted, taking a seat on the bed. „What about you?"

„What about me?"

„About your wounds." She specified. „Did you take care of yourself?"

He looked down. „N-No, but I'm fine, Sakura. Really, I am-"

The rosette frowned. She reached out for his left arm and grabbed it. The blond winced in pain. She lifted the sleeve of the jacket to reveal red blotches and torn skin beneath.

„This doesn't look so fine to me, Naruto." She insisted with a serious tone.

He lowered his sleeve down. „I don't want you wasting your chakra. We might need it later today."

„The same goes for you. We don't know what we're going up against." She replied.

Naruto gazed back at her with a concerned look in his eyes. He knew she was determined and he knew there wasn't anything he could say to stop her. He was in pain, but he could've handled it. He also could've used her help, but he knew if she did that, she wouldn't have much chakra left.

„At least heal yourself first." He finally said.

Sakura raised her brow. „Why? I'm not in as bad of a shape as you."

„I'm just prioritizing you over me." He clarified. „After all, your well-being is more important on this mission than mine."

The rosette sighed. „Would it make you feel better if I did?"

His face lit up. „Certainly."

Sakura smiled lightly and brought her hands up to untie the cloth. „Alright, but you're not off the hook just yet!"

* * *

Quite a while passed since she finished healing the bruises on her arms and the wound on the back of her head. Once she completely recovered, she started healing Naruto, but struggled to heal him properly since it was the beast who caused the wounds. It was taking up a lot of time as well. Her hands traveled from his forearm to his shoulder, not missing a single spot on his arm. She then moved to his back and healed the whole area, before moving to his front. He was currently sitting shirtless in front of her with her hands close to his chest, green energy emitting from them.

Naruto was always amazed by her powers and deep concentration. He didn't know the first thing about medicine, but even he could tell she had outstanding medical skills. There was also something so firm, yet gentle about her chakra that was really soothing. He'd feel a sting every now and then from skin being replenished, but it didn't hurt as much.

The blond got lost in the emerald green of her eyes. She was so focused on healing him that she didn't even notice him staring at her. Sitting so close to her like this, made his heart race faster with each passing minute and he prayed to the heavens she wouldn't notice. Moments like these made him remember how much of a close bond they shared. Three years without teammates made her notably independent and strong, but caring as well. He took notice of how she was more than eager to help anyone in need, whether it was during a battle or just in everyday life. They certainly became much closer ever since he came back to the village.

Naruto couldn't help the smile appearing on his face. Despite the feelings he held for her, he just hoped he could make her somewhat happy, one way or the other. She was a great person, nonetheless. One he'd do anything for.

„Alright, all done here." The rosette declared with a heavy pant. „Now turn around so I can look at your right side."

„I think that's enough, Sakura." He looked away to try to hide the forming redness in his face. „I-I can see you're out of breath. If you keep going, you'll be completely drained."

„But..." She started, but didn't finish her sentence. „Well, alright, but you should at least get bandages."

„That's not necessary." The blond said, picking up the jacket and the t-shirt that were laid on his pillow. „I can still move and fight."

„But you're right-handed, Naruto, and you might even get an infection!" She frowned. „The wounds are also going to slow you down during combat."

„So are bandages." He added, putting his clothes on. „It's going to make me slower either way. And besides, my right arm isn't as bad as my left one was and I can't get infected because of the Nine-tails' constant healing."

„...True." She reluctantly said. „But you need to get treatment once we get back."

„Yeah, yeah." He replied and stood up from the bed to stretch his back. In the process of doing so, his stomach churned, _loudly_.

„Wow. You must be starving." Sakura couldn't help but to giggle, breaking the serious character. Naruto turned in embarrassment and held his abdomen.

„Not my fault we barely ate yesterday! All the shops were closed!"

She managed to stop herself from laughing and look at him with a smile on her face. „It's okay, I'm quite hungry myself. Why don't we go out and get something for ourselves?"

„Good idea." He then looked down at her with a sigh. „I suppose we still need to overlook this part of the village for the sake of our mission, huh?"

„We'll do that on the go." The rosette stood up and gathered her belongings. „We still have time. It's only 2 p.m."

„Alright then." He looked around and picked up what little bearings he had. Throwing his backpack over his shoulder, he turned and saw her standing by the door. „Lead the way, Sakura-chan."

* * *

The day was sunny with little to no clouds in sight. It was like a whole new season compared to what it was like in the Leaf. Naruto and Sakura were walking through the streets, and again, not many people were there.

An awkward silence it was, he had to admit. They hadn't spoken a word to one another ever since they left the inn. Naruto kept glancing back and forth between his teammate and the street, not really knowing what to say. He opened his mouth in an attempt to say something, but was interrupted by Sakura as she pointed to something in the distance.

„Naruto, look." She said. „Food stands."

The blond looked in the direction her finger was pointing to, and indeed, there were lots of food-selling shops and stands.

„We found the market place." He said, in as-a-matter-of-fact fashion.

„So, I take it you want to get ramen?" She turned her gaze to meet his.

„Well, yeah." He said, then looked down. „But we can get something else if you want to."

„No, I'm fine with ramen." She agreed, looking back to the street. „Although, we could get something else with it too."

They stopped near the closest food stand and Naruto nudged her by the elbow, pointing to the menu items. „Go ahead and choose then."

„Let's see what I'm in the mood for..." She muttered, looking through the menu. In a moment, something caught her eye. „How about dumplings?"

„Sounds good to me." He smiled.

They approached the stand and took their seats. Much like Ichiraku, every ramen stand was pretty much the same. They both ordered pork ramen and a medium-sized portion of dumplings. The chef began making the dishes, leaving the two in each other's company. Figuring he had nothing else to do, the blond started the conversation.

„So, after we're done here, where do you think we should first head off to?"

„Well, I suppose this market is a good place to start. Maybe we should also get ourselves a map to get to know the area a little better." The rosette said and he nodded in response.

„I hope it's just me, but..." Naruto muttered. „I feel weird in this village. It's downright strange, especially with the little number of civilians. Not to mention, we haven't encountered any Sound shinobi so far." He turned to look at her. „I find it kinda odd."

„I was thinking the same thing." She admitted. „We should be careful."

„Two pork ramen coming up!" The chef announced as he placed the two bowls in front of them. „Fresh from the pot!"

„Thank you." They both said in unison and started eating.

It wasn't as good as Ichiraku's, Naruto thought, but it was still ramen. He slurped down a bite as he glanced at the rosette in the corner of his eye. He could tell she was hungry from the way she ate and he now felt bad for not finding something to eat the day before. During mission, he could easily put it in the back of his head and forget he was hungry at all, but he didn't know if it was the same case with her.

Soon enough, both of their bowls were empty and the second part of their order arrived. Sakura stared in awe at the plate as it was set before her.

„Something wrong?" Naruto asked.

She shook her head, still staring at the delicious food. „It's just that... I think the last time I ate dumplings was during the last meal we had as a team three years ago."

„Really?" He asked, chuckling. „Has it been that long?"

„Yeah." She took a bite. „Time really goes by fast. Still can't believe we're that much older now." She said, briefly remembering their genin days.

The blond got lost in thought. „Come to think of it..." He muttered. „Isn't your birthday in March? Around this time?"

„Yeah, it is." She said, surprised he remembered it at all. Her gaze became distant for a moment. „In fact, what date is it now?"

„It's the 31st, I think."

She narrowed her eyes a bit. „Oh..." She muttered. „It's been three days ago, then."

„What?!" He looked up in shock. „Why didn't you didn't tell me?!"

„Honestly, I forgot it myself." She shrugged. „It's really not that big of a deal. I had a lot of work this past week, so I didn't even remember. Besides, I haven't really ever celebrated birthdays anyway."

„How come?" He asked, raising a brow.

She sighed. „I don't know. I have a small family, so there weren't ever many people to celebrate with me and I didn't really have friends when I was younger. Then we became a team, but you and Sasuke left, so even then it stayed the same. I mean, of course Ino, Tsunade and the others have congratulated me through the years, but that was basically it."

„I didn't know you had to go through that..." He muttered. „I didn't have anyone to celebrate birthdays with me either, but when I was with Pervy Sage, he really wanted me to have fun on those days, so I kinda got to experience it." He then looked down. „But I feel bad for you, if I had known, I would've bought you a present or something."

She smiled warmly. „There's really no need for that, but I do appreciate it."

He smiled back. „So, you're what, seventeen now?"

„Yup." She said, leaning against the table. „Almost an official adult."

„Yeah." The blond agreed. „I always keep forgetting that you're half a year older than me." He chuckled.

„The difference in height doesn't help either..." She muttered, a bit annoyed. It was true, he had grown over the years and now was a few inches taller than her.

„Don't sweat it, Sakura-chan. You definitely act way mature than me, so I guess it evens us out."

She tried to keep a serious face, but it softened into a smile. „Well, when I talk to you like this, I can say you've certainly matured more than I thought you would."

He blushed a bit, unsure or how to react to the compliment. „O-Oh..."

„Aside from the influence of Jiraiya, that is." She stated coldly.

„Oh, come on!" He looked at her in disbelief. „_You_ try traveling with him for years and come back acting normal!"

She tried to keep a straight face, until she burst out in laughter. Naruto groaned, realizing how easily he fell for her teasing.

„Oh relax, I'm just giving you a hard time." She smiled.

„Yeah, I can see that..." He muttered, leaning into his palm, his elbow resting on the table. He then looked back at her as she ate the last bite, a smile still spreading her lips. Although she didn't see it, he too, smiled slightly. Seeing her happy like this was more than enough to make his day.

He was pulled out of his thoughts as the chef came back to collect the dishes. Sakura was about to reach into her bag for her wallet, but Naruto was way ahead of her, already giving him the money to pay for them both. She stared back at him, dumbfounded.

„What?" He looked back at her.

„I could've payed my own share, you know." She huffed as they sat up from the stools.

„I know." He smiled, looking into her eyes. „But the least I can do for you is treat you a meal. As a birthday gift, if anything."

She blushed and averted her gaze to the ground as they continued to walk. „Idiot..."

* * *

„So, that's the place?" The blond asked, looking into the distance.

Sakura nodded. „I'm positive."

The two stood atop of one of the buildings in town, the sun setting behind them slowly. A few hours had passed since they left and began surveying the village, although they hadn't noticed anything particularly important. The blond scratched the back of his head as he looked down at the map in his hands, trying to pinpoint the location of their destination.

„Alright, we've checked the area over here..." Naruto mumbled to himself. „It should only be a quick 10-minute run from here."

The rosette nodded, looking at the saloon place at the opposite edge of the village. It seemed quite far from their standpoint, but she knew they would reach it quickly.

„We still have some time before the sun completely sets." Naruto pointed out. „Wanna do something while we wait?"

„Sure." She said, taking another look at the map, analyzing it for a few seconds. „We've checked pretty much everywhere."

„Except here." He added, pointing to the area around the inn and the streets they were walking through the day before.

„I doubt we'll find anything there." She grunted and looked away.

„We've got nothing better to do." He shrugged and then sighed. „Listen, if you're paranoid about what happened last night, we won't go."

„It's not that I'm paranoid, it's..." She stuttered and crossed her arms. „I just don't like that place."

The blond studied her face for a moment, realizing she was still a little disturbed by talking about the whole event. He slowly nodded in understanding. „So, how about we take a walk to the bar?"

„Sure." The rosette sighed, letting her arms fall back into place as she looked in the direction of their destination.

* * *

The rooftops were more of a convenient road for them since most of the buildings were mashed together in a line, creating an easy-to-follow path. The sky was littered with orange-red hues as they kept walking. A soft breeze blew their way, making the leaves in the streets below them rustle against one another, breaking the silence. Naruto gazed at his feet, thinking about their conversation, unable to take something off his mind. He finally spoke up.

„Hey, Sakura." He began. „Can I ask you something?"

„Go ahead."

He rubbed his temple, trying to figure out how to form the sentence. „Well, I wanted to ask you... about yesterday."

She stiffened a little, but kept her demeanor. „What about it?"

„You know what I'm talking about." He looked at her. „I need to know what happened."

The rosette sighed sharply, clenching her fists. „I walked into the damn alley, thinking I'd find you there, but as we both know, that didn't happen."

The blond nodded, urging her to continue.

„Five of them came at me and one of them pulled out an electric shocker." She stopped briefly, clutching her fist. „I bet they weren't even shinobi. I could've used my full strength, but I'd risk getting us caught, so they got the better of me."

„That's it?" He raised a brow.

„Yes, that's it." She hissed.

He took note of her pissed off behavior, but reluctantly kept asking further. „Do you remember them mentioning any na-"

„Look," She stopped and turned to look at him, brows furrowing. „I told you what happened and that's it."

He frowned a bit. „I'm just trying to figure out if they had something to do with our mission."

„They were a bunch of thugs, probably trying to take me someplace else and... God knows what else do to me!"

His eyes widened slightly at the thought. „You know that wouldn't happen." He retorted. „I know you, Sakura. You're smarter and tougher than that. Even if I hadn't gotten there in time, you would've still found a way to get away."

„My chakra was being _drained_." She insisted. „And if I had used brute force, I'd get us in trouble!"

„Sakura." He suddenly grabbed one of her shoulders, shocking her. „It makes me angry as much as it makes you." His grip loosened. „But I came and saved you, so there's no point in worrying about what could've happened."

After a brief moment of staring at him, she snapped out of her trance and brushed his hands off her. „The fact that I needed your help isn't reassuring at all." She muttered and began walking again, obviously mad at the blond.

He sighed as he followed her. „Sorry I asked about it..."

The two continued walking in silence after that. A very unpleasant silence, in fact. A few minutes passed and Sakura finally let her anger go, realizing Naruto did nothing to deserve the way she acted toward him. However, the simple fact that she was outmatched still provoked her...

„...I heard them say they were working for someone who ordered them to capture me." She spoke in a calmer tone, offering the only notable information she could remember.

Naruto lifted his head. „Any names in particular?"

„They only referred to the person as their boss." She answered. „Could be anyone, really."

„The fact that they ordered _your_ capture in particular is a bit unsettling." Naruto muttered. „Which means they somehow knew you'd be here."

This statement got her to tense up a bit. „I don't know." She stopped walking and looked at the bar a few blocks ahead of them. „I guess we'll find out if it has anything to do with these guys."

* * *

The two jumped off the roof and landed swiftly onto the ground below. The sun had set completely by now, considering it was late winter, it meant it was probably around 7 p.m. They sneaked behind a corner of a building and walked into a shadow to avoid getting spotted as it was a bit more of a crowded area.

„So, this is it." The rosette said. „You ready?"

„I am, but will _you_ be able to pull this off?" He whispered.

She smirked. „Yeah, I think I'll be fine. This isn't my first time doing something like this." She said and Naruto looked at her worriedly. She sighed.

„I'll be fine, it's really easy to fool someone when they're drunk, you know." She muttered. „I also have some shuriken and kunai knifes, so don't worry too much. And besides, you'll be there with me." She explained and he nodded.

„Alright," The rosette started. „I'll enter the front and you sneak up by the back entrance. You need to keep distance, but I should be able to see you." She said. „I'll find a place to sit and look around for them. Once I find them, I'll give you the signal and I'll approach them. If everything goes smoothly from there, we should be able to do this without a hitch. The only problem is recognizing them since we don't really have any information about their physical appearance..." She muttered in thought.

„Actually," Naruto stopped her, remembering his conversation with their former sensei. „now that I remember, Kakashi gave me a photo of one of them. It should make your job at least a little easier." He reached into his pocket and dug around. A few moments later, he pulled out a small picture. He handed it to Sakura.

She observed the photograph for a few moments, it was a bit blurry and only one man was recognizable from the photo. She slowly nodded. „That's one problem solved, then. Thanks."

She then dug her hand into her pouch, searching for something. Once she found it, she pulled her hand out. What she pulled out seemed to be pills.

„What are those for?" Naruto raised his brow at her.

„These are for chakra loss and as you know, shinobi are weaker when they can't use chakra. On top of that, they'll probably be drunk, so it shouldn't be hard to find out everything we need to." She finished and he nodded.

The rosette proceeded to take her headband off, to which Naruto responded by looking at her in confusion.

„We need to take these off, you don't want them noticing we're ninja, do you?" She muttered annoyingly.

„Oh." He said, reaching behind his head to untie the knot. „Sorry."

Once they were all set, she took a deep breath. „Alright. Good luck, Naruto."

„You'll need more luck than I will."

* * *

They parted ways. Sakura headed for the main entrance of the bar. Before she entered, she made sure one more time that she didn't give off any hints that she was a ninja. Both she and Naruto sealed their belongings into scrolls and hid all their weapons. Beside the pouch on her belt, nothing else could've exposed her. Once she stepped inside, a smelly wave of alcohol and male breath hit her. It took all her willpower not to cringe and run outside for fresh air. She quickly walked over and seated herself on one of the stools near the bartender.

She looked around the place. Altogether, only around ten men were in the saloon, most of them loners, drinking their beverages at their tables. She was about to look closer to see if she recognized any of them when the bartender whistled, drawing her attention.

He approached her. „Can I get something for ya?"

„Just a lemonade, please." She was still technically underage and she didn't like any of those strong beverages.

„A lemonade?" The barkeeper looked at her skeptically.

„Yes, please." She gave him an annoyed look. He quickly got the message and started making some lemonade.

The rosette proceeded to observe the men that were sitting around, none of them resembled the one in the picture. Something then caught her attention. She heard laughter at the other end of the bar. She turned her head in that direction.

Two men were sitting in one of the booths and talking to each other, one of them matching the description of their target. He was averagely built; his hair and eyes were dark brown and his skin was pale. He had a small beard stubble and couldn't possibly be older than 25. The other man was quite muscular and was the body-builder type, probably was taller than the other one, too. Other than that, all his other features were almost identical to the other. The rosette narrowed her eyes, knowing something wasn't right. The info from their intel said the third shinobi would be with them too, yet he wasn't there.

She heard the stool beside her being shifted as if someone sat on it. She turned her head slightly to see who it was, only to find out it was Naruto. Her eyes widened in shock as she stared at him. He wasn't supposed to come near her!

„What in the hell are you doing here, you idiot!?" She whispered. „You're gonna blow my cover if they notice us!"

„I came in through the back and waved at you, but you didn't pay attention." He shrugged. „Your fault I had to come up to you to talk."

She huffed and leaned further away from him, trying to act as if she wasn't talking to him. „Well, what is it?"

„Have you noticed them yet?" He asked and a moment later she slightly nodded. „What's the plan?"

She paused for a moment, thinking of a strategy. „I'll head over and meet them. I don't know where the third guy is, but if his absence is intentional, this could easily be an ambush." She warned him.

He nodded. „Yeah. I'll keep an eye out for him."

He was about to wish her good luck one last time, but the barkeeper came back with the drink in his hand for Sakura. He watched her as she took the glass and got up from her seat. She glanced over at him, taking a deep breath. „Well, here goes nothing..."

She turned and started walking across the room. All Naruto could do was simply hope for the best.

* * *

She tried to not make it obvious where she had headed, but it wasn't like anyone payed attention anyway. She finally reached the men in the booth, who were soon to be their enemies. She stopped in front of them, prepared to act out a fake personality.

„Hi there." She greeted them confidently. „Mind if I join you two?" She smiled.

Both men looked up at her, suddenly feeling a bit sober. They looked at each other in surprise, but then grinned back at her. It was obvious they were drunk already. „Of course we wouldn't mind being in presence of such a pretty young lady."

She smiled as she sat next to them, propping herself and pushing her chest out a bit, knowing how much advantage she had over their drunken states. As she did that, they did nothing to hide the way they were looking at her.

She cleared her throat, somewhat annoyed. „So, what are your names?"

The man she knew from the picture kept staring at her for a few moments before snapping back to reality. „Oh, right. This is my man, Dai." He pointed to his friend. „And my name is Osamu. May I ask for the lady's name?" He grinned.

She gave him a fake smile. "My name is-"

_„Crap! I didn't even think about that! Uh... Think, think!" _She internally panicked for a moment.

„Hm?" Osamu looked at her confusedly.

„Hana. My name is Hana." She smiled politely.

„Hana, you say?" His buffed friend asked her in a gruff voice „That's a common name these days."

„Y-Yeah! I get that a lot actually." She faked a laugh, feeling a droplet of cold sweat trickle down the side of her forehead.

„So, Hana..." Osamu started. „What brings you to chat with the two losers like us?"

„Oh, I just wanted some company." She said, regaining back her confidence. „It gets lonely at times."

„So you say..." Dai moved a bit closer to her. „We know what it's like, we tend to be loners ourselves."

„I can't see why. You seem to be quite a catch." She winked seductively, to which they both smirked.

_„I can't fucking believe I just did that." _She thought to herself in disgust and shame.

„Oh, well..." Osamu started. „We don't really have a _good_ reputation around these parts."

„And why would that be?" She asked obliviously.

„Let's just say... we tend to cause trouble."

„Oh?" She raised her brow, leaning onto the table and crossing her legs. „Are you one of those_ rouge ninja_ I've heard of?"

They both narrowed their eyes at this comment. „You're not from around here, are you?"

She leaned back, crossing her arms and pushing her chest out further. „No, in fact, I'm not. I'm on a trip with a friend and we haven't stayed here for long enough to get to know the people around here." She then smirked. „But... I felt a bit adventurous tonight."

„You don't say." Dai chuckled, staring at her.

„So, you guys _are_ ninja, right?" She asked in a clueless manner and they both reluctantly nodded. She widened her eyes in surprise. „That's so cool! I want to hear more about it!"

The two were startled by her positive attitude at first, but soon figured out she must have not been aware of what those kinds of shinobi actually were (or so they thought), to a normal civilian, rouge shinobi were just criminals, nothing special about them.

„Well?" She asked in anticipation. „Do you guys have like, a secret base and all of that stuff?"

Seeing how well she responded and how interested she was, Dai smirked in his drunken state and said; „Yeah, it's awesome. We do all kinds of experiments."

The inner Sakura took note of the information, but she widened her eyes, pretending to be surprised. „Wow, that's amazing!"

„Oh, you'd be thrilled to see what goes on in there." Osamu chuckled. „It's not something you see every day."

„Do tell." She smiled. „So, do you live there?"

„Most of the time." Dai answered. „We tend to travel a lot too."

„Really?" The rosette pouted. „Boy, I wish I could do things like that... I never trained to be a ninja, so I couldn't do so even if I wanted to."

„We could show you around." Osamu smiled as he drunkenly gazed at a specific part of her body. „But you need to promise not to touch anything or tell anyone about it."

„Really?!" She exclaimed. „I can't wait!"

They both chuckled and Sakura took a sip of the lemonade in her hand, processing everything in her head. If everything were to go smoothly, she could even let them lead her to their hideout. It was risky, maybe even a trap, but they seemed too drunk to recognize her and they didn't seem like they were lying. Still, there was a huge chance their mission would be ruined...

In the corner of her eye, she saw the bartender approaching. She hoped they'd order something strong to get themselves even drunker. The man stopped at their table and turned to them.

„Want me to get you anything else?" The bartender asked them and Sakura showed him her glass, telling him that she didn't want to take anything. He then turned to the two men.

„A round of the strongest sake you've got." Osamu smirked.

Sakura's face fell. _„Am I supposed to drink that?"_

The man nodded and turned around. As soon as he was out of sight, she nervously looked at the two. „Y-You know that I already have some lemonade-"

„A little sake isn't going to kill you." Dai laughed.

„S-Sure."

„So, when you said you felt a bit adventurous tonight..." Osamu smirked. „What did you exactly mean?"

„Oh, umm..." Her face became red in embarrassment, only now realizing what she had blurted out and how it must've sounded to them.

„Stop giving her a hard time, jackass." Dai snorted. „I think you very well know what she meant by that." He turned and grinned at her. „Right?"

The rosette took a moment to think of something to say. She was at a loss for words, not planning the outcome of this situation. Fortunately, she saw the waiter waving at them to get their drinks. If this was a chance to get away, even just for a few moments, she was taking it.

„Excuse me." She cleared her throat and got up. She walked up to the front table where he had left the beverage.

„This better work..." She muttered and secretly pulled out the pills from before and put them in two of the cups. She then turned and walked back to her seat, hoping the alcohol mixed with the chemicals would knock them out.

„Here you go." She handed them their sake.

Completely clueless, they took the cups. „We'll chug it on three!" Dai grinned, hoisting up his drink.

„One, two, three... Go!" The two exclaimed in unison and chugged the whole cup. Sakura made a nasty face and took a sip, but she spat it out.

„_Gross! How can Lady Tsunade drink this stuff?"_

„What's the matter?" Osamu asked, putting his glass down, feeling a little dizzy.

„I don't really like sake." She told him, putting her glass away.

„So..." Dai turned to her, completely ignoring what she said. „Let's get back to the topic..." He said, creepily running his fingertips over her thigh underneath the table. Sakura stiffened up, unprepared for the touch.

„Say, it's a bit of a shame to end the night on just chatting." Osamu smirked. „How about you come with us and we have a little fun?"

„Well... I guess we'll see." Even though she was obviously uncomfortable, they still didn't notice it.

Osamu took a step further to wrap an arm around her shoulders playfully as the two of them kept talking to her. At this point, she didn't give a damn about the mission, red flags were rising everywhere in her mind and she just wanted to get out of there. She even tried to put some space between them and herself, but they didn't budge.

This went on for a few more minutes and she did her best to stay calm, not paying the least bit of attention to what they were talking about. It was probably something irrelevant anyway. She tried thinking of ways to escape or somehow make them move away from her, although nothing came to mind. And then an alarming thought popped up in her head. She forgot about it, but all this time... Naruto was still watching her.

She gulped, rising her gaze to look for him at any of the other tables. She couldn't see him in her peripheral vision, but she just knew his eyes were on her. What would he think of her if she couldn't get out of this? She was afraid to even think how mad he'd be at her for letting this happen. It was her fault, after all...

The rosette suddenly felt the same hand on her shoulder move lower and in the next moment, he groped her breast.

„Oops, my hand slipped." He chuckled. She widened her eyes. It took all her willpower not to scream at the onslaught. She had to put a stop to it; she suddenly got up and moved away from them.

„I... I just need to go to the restroom... I'll be back in a minute."

„Take your time." They grinned to each other.

She quickly made her way to the other side of the bar where the toilets were, but also noticed the door to the back entrance in the corner as well. She looked behind her to make sure her enemies weren't looking. She stepped outside and closed the door behind her, clutching her fists.

„Those fucked up bastards..." The rosette cursed and hit the outside wall, making a big crack. She repeated the process a few more times, until she felt satisfied.

She panted heavily, the chilly air helped her cool down. She told herself she was prepared for this mission and in fact, what they did to her was expected to happen, but... it didn't change the fact that she felt disgusted and disturbed by it.

The medic-nin turned around and looked at the scenery before her. The saloon was settled on the very edge of the village on a hill, so it was predictable the view would be astonishing. The stars shined brightly in the dark sky and the moonlight allowed her to see the high mountains in the distance. The sight alone was enough to calm her mind, even if just barely.

She didn't know how long she stood there, but it was quite a while before she heard footsteps coming from the inside. The door opened and when she turned to look behind her, she saw Naruto standing by the door.

His expression held a mixture of feelings and she couldn't quite tell which they were, but none seemed to be positive.

„Don't look at me like that." She turned away from him. „I know you're angry at me-"

„Are you out of your goddamn mind?!" He startled her with his sudden outburst. His brows furrowed. „Why in the heck would I be mad at _you_?! Those assholes are the ones who pissed me off to no end!"

She fidgeted her fingers, looking away. „I-It's my fault, I was being provocative-"

„_You_ were just doing your job. _They_, however, were being absolute creeps!"

She stayed silent. All that had happened up until now, made her confused and uncertain about herself. She didn't know why she felt that way; she'd usually keep a cool head in these situations. Then again, there was Naruto... She would've pulled through just fine if she hadn't panicked at the thought of him being there, watching the whole ordeal.

Why was she even feeling that way?

The thought hit her like a wall. She was starting to realize she wasn't acting or feeling like herself around Naruto ever since the attack. She felt... vulnerable. She felt as if he was seeing her as weak and helpless. She didn't want that, she wanted to prove she didn't need any help, but nothing was going in her favor. First the attack, now this... She was afraid to even think about what was coming next.

„Sakura?" The rosette heard him call out to her, pulling her out of her trance.

She felt something wet sliding down her cheek and only then did she realize she was crying. Quickly, she lifted her hand to brush the tear off and rub her eyes.

She felt a hand on her shoulder as he turned her around, his face no more showing anger, just worry.

„You okay?" His eyes giving a concerned look.

The rosette let out a shallow breath, then looked down, not being able to deny it. „How can I be? Especially with everything that's happened."

„Sakura..." Naruto said silently. „I... I'm sorry I yelled at you, but it just makes me mad to think about what they did-"

„And you don't think it makes _me_ mad?" She snapped suddenly. „I can't stand them! I thought I was prepared for this and I kept telling myself it didn't bother me, but... How could it not?"

„Listen," He pleaded, trying to calm her. „I know you don't like being touched like that-"

„Of course I don't like being touched by some creeps, let alone strangers!" She yelled at him and he looked back at her, shocked.

A moment of silence passed as they stared at one another. Sakura then turned to look away from him.

„What are you doing here anyway? You should've stayed inside, minded your own business." She said coldly.

Although it pained him for her to say that, he frowned and kept his composure.

„I came out here to make sure you're fine. You were gone for a while."

„I _am_ fine, I don't need your help." She frowned, looking back at him. „Why do you even care so much?"

„Why wouldn't I?" He raised a brow. „You _are_ one of my closest friends."

„I know, but..." She sighed in frustration. „I get the feeling you care more than you should."

He stopped briefly before answering. „Well, this scenario doesn't exactly happen every day, you know." He said quietly.

They both silenced down, even though the tension was clearly still in the air. They didn't look at each other, just at the ground beneath them. Naruto took a deep breath before taking step a closer to her.

„Listen," He sighed gently. „I may seem like I care too much and I get a bit protective when it comes to you, but... I have my reasons." He trailed off. This caught her attention, making her look up at him.

„What I want to say is..." He scratched the back of his head. „I wouldn't do these things if you didn't mean anything to me..." He looked up at her. „But you know you do. So, don't be surprised I care." He finished.

The rosette proceeded to stay silent, looking at him in sheer shock and she could've sworn she felt her heart skip. Regret was slowly catching up with her. She started to realize how ridiculous she was, overreacting to something as simple as a friendly gesture. Guilt caught up with her, she knew she should've been grateful for a friend that cared for her so deeply. She knew that Naruto was the only friend, beside Ino, that cared for her that much. She simply wasn't fair to him and felt like her emotions would burst out at any moment.

She turned around, facing the wall now and wiping her tears. She couldn't keep her emotions intact and it frustrated her that she didn't know why.

„Sakura?" He looked up in surprise. „Sakura, did I say something?" He put his hand on her shoulder.

„You... You jerk..." She wiped her eyes „You really know how to get a girl emotional."

„H-Huh?" He raised his brow.

She smiled sadly. „I'm starting to wonder how can you get to me like this..." She whispered. „I never knew you cared this much."

„Well, I don't blame you." He smiled warmly. „We haven't seen each other in years."

The rosette looked up at him, a genuine smile on her face, eyes a bit red, but glistening. Naruto felt a lump in his throat as she gave him the look, only now realizing how close they were standing next to each other. He tried taking in the details in her features; how the breeze blew through her silky hair, the way her jade eyes stared back at his own, and how slight redness spread over her cheeks and nose, either from blushing or the cold. His heart skipped when he suddenly felt her arms wrapping around him into a tight hug. His eyes were wide and a slight shade of red was spreading over his face, but soon enough, his hands found their way around her waist and he returned the hug.

Her embrace... It was warm.

„Thank you, you know... for everything." She said. „I know I don't really show it, but... I'm glad you're there for me."

He chuckled. „You're welcome, I guess."

She moved away from him and blushed as a nervous smile crept up on her face.

„Hey, Naruto." She said. „When this mission is over... and we get home..." She blushed. „How about we... go on that date you always wanted us to go on?"

„Wh-What?! For real?" He gulped in shock and she nodded.

„I..." She turned her head slightly. „I want to get to know you better as a person and... well, spend a little more time with you. I feel like I owe you that much, at least." She said, looking back at him. „If you don't mind, of course."

„N-No, of course I don't mind." He stuttered, eyes still somewhat wide. „In fact, I'd be more than happy to do that!"

„Good." She smiled, then took a deep breath and looked at the back door behind them. „We... We should get going, they're probably knocked out by now."

The blond slightly nodded, watching her walk ahead of him and through the door. His thoughts, however, were far from the mission at hand, as he was still concentrated on processing everything she said, shock still flowing through him.

* * *

As they both walked back into the center of the room, they immediately stopped after being met with a surprise. Osamu and Dai were standing alongside their booth, seemingly waiting for Sakura. Shock was evident on her face, not understanding why they were even conscious. She gulped in anxiety as they looked up and noticed her, frowns appearing on their faces.

„Well, well, look who we have here." Osamu proclaimed, suddenly sounding way sober. „Is it not the jinchuuriki of the Leaf himself, huh?"

Naruto frowned back at him, taking a step forward, next to Sakura. „The hell...?"

She gulped. „I don't know what you're talking about-"

„Drop the bullshit act," Dai rasped before smirking. „_Haruno Sakura_."

„How do you know who I am?" She widened her eyes. „And why aren't you paralyzed yet!? You should've been knocked out long ago!" She yelled.

„Ah, so that's what's bothering you." Osamu smiled, pulling out two pills from his pocket. „Were these supposed to do that?"

„Bastards!" Naruto hissed. Before Sakura could do anything else, he reared his fist back as he ran towards Osamu to hit his face. He closed the distance between them and the rouge flew into the back wall, cracking it. However, the man just smiled evilly once he looked up.

„You call that a punch?" He snickered. „I'll show you what's a real ninja attack."

He whispered something under his breath and made some hand-signs. In the next moment, he directed his hand toward the blond.

The jinchuuriki frowned as he stepped back, but in the next moment, he felt lightheaded.

* * *

_Naruto suddenly felt darkness caving in on him. He found himself in an empty space, away from both his teammate and their enemies, panicking and looking around warily. He felt complete isolation and each sound he tried to make got stuck in his throat and never seemed to escape his mouth. Cold sweat trickled down the side of his forehead. He was all alone._

_Suddenly, whizzing sounds flew from somewhere around him and he turned around frantically to figure out what they were. Once he got his eyes to focus, he realized sharp weapons were being thrown at him._

_He felt sudden pain in his side once another blade flew by him. The blond looked down and saw a bloodied line where it hit him. A few more weapons came at him and for some reason, his movements seemed unusually slow, so he barely avoided any of them. He inevitably got hit and got cut all over his body._

_He breathed heavily, trying to block the weapons with his hands, but it didn't do him any good. The pain from the cuts wasn't that bad, but the throbbing all over his body was slowing him down even more. He crouched to the ground and hissed as he got hit again and again._

_„...ruto!"_

_He heard distant yelling in the blackness. He narrowed his eyes and tried making out what it was. The weapons that were hitting him seemed to stop._

_„Snap out of it!" Somebody yelled, this time louder._

_In the far distance, Naruto could barely see a weak light and a silhouette running toward him. Soon enough, he recognized the figure to be his teammate._

_He started to feel lightheaded again and it made him want to throw up, his head spinning. Suddenly, all of the darkness faded away and he could see Sakura sprinting toward him, clear as day._

* * *

„Naruto!" The rosette shrieked.

The blond opened his eyes and found himself back in the bar. He widened his eyes as he felt sweat on his forehead.

He blinked as he took in his surroundings and found himself on his knees, clutching his body in a few places. He removed his hands and saw newly-appeared cuts on the places he was covering himself. He looked down at his bloodied hands and widened his eyes.

„The hell?!" He almost stumbled back as he stood up. He looked down his body and found the same cuts he received in the illusion.

Confused as he was, he looked up and found his comrade fighting off Dai, all on her own. He charged at her and threw fists in her way. She jumped backwards and landed on the ground a few feet away. He was visibly muscular and could probably match the same inhuman strength as her, making him an even more dangerous opponent. He leaped at her again and brought his knees together in the air to crush her with them. Fortunately, she moved away fast enough, but as he landed, a large hole appeared in her place as the ground beneath him literally shattered.

The rosette fell back and moved close enough to Naruto to put some distance between themselves and their enemies.

„What was that?" Naruto stuttered as he looked up at her in shock. „What happened?"

„Genjutsu, I think." Sakura muttered, looking at him warily. „As soon as Osamu pointed at you, you were out of it. Your body was suddenly getting cut all over, without any reason and I couldn't figure out what was going on. You fell to the ground and started breathing heavily, but didn't seem to react to anything that was happening around you."

She looked back at the two men. „And as soon as I tried attacking Osamu, Dai stopped me immediately and wouldn't let me get anywhere near him." She said. „Seems like he needs to be still in order for his genjutsu to work."

„I..." The blond muttered. „In the illusion I was in, I was hit by a lot of blades and got cut." He looked down at his scratched palm. „And now I'm cut in real life, too? What kind of a jutsu does this?"

Sakura gave him an unsure and a worried look. „I wish I knew."

Naruto narrowed his eyes as he looked back to the corner where Osamu was. Dai watched him get up a few feet away. He huffed as he stood on his legs warily.

„He might be weaker now." The blond observed and frowned. „Now's our chance!"

Before Sakura could stop him, he dashed for the two and managed to get close enough to land a hit. Dai, however, got in his way and prepared to block him. He did so and kicked Naruto to the side. The rouge widened his eyes in surprise when the jinchuuriki's body was substituted for a piece of wood.

In the next moment, Naruto appeared behind Osamu and aimed a punch for his head. The rouge, however, turned and blocked his attacks with ease, which shocked the blond. Before he could get hit, he quickly jumped away and briefly managed to catch his breath as he observed his enemies.

Naruto widened his eyes as he suddenly heard a painful groan coming from behind him. He turned and saw Sakura holding her stomach. Someone was standing behind her and she quickly evaded this person's blade, moving to the side. The man behind her was a spitting image of the other two, with spikier hair and dark circles under his eyes, but was shorter and slimmer than them both.

The blade in his hand was covered in blood. Naruto took a glance at the rosette and saw her hand clutching her stomach, droplets of blood running down her uniform.

„Dammit." She grunted. „So, you're the third one, I assume."

„You don't say." He sarcastically said, his voice arrogant.

„Kurai! Took you long enough to get here, you ass!" Osamu complained as he brushed some dirt off his shoulder.

„Sorry." He turned to glance at Naruto. „I'll make it up to you."

„What the hell is going on!?" The blond growled. „How did you know we'd be here?!"

„Oh, you know, _intel_." Osamu waved his hand, suddenly re-appearing next to Dai. „We prepared ourselves ever since we apparently became a threat to the Leaf. After a while, we found out they were going to send us their best medical ninja. Although, we didn't even recognize her until she walked out. Guess we really went overboard with the drinks."

„So... Y-You knew all this time...?" Naruto's eyes went wide in shock.

„Of course we knew!" Dai said, his voice full of arrogance. „We knew she was here the first day you came! Who do you think payed those idiots from yesterday? They should've captured you and made our job easier, but you proved to be a challenge..." He grunted.

„That was also you...?" She widened her eyes.

„Who would've thought... You actually fight well." Osamu chuckled, looking directly at the rosette. „But despite the rumors about your strength, I gotta admit..." He smirked and creepily licked his lips. „You _are_ quite womanly... It sure felt nice feeling you up-"

Naruto kicked his face in, shutting him up before he could say any more. The blond's frown showed distinct rage and disgust. Sakura stared back, her face holding almost the same emotions, but in her case, rage was replaced with horror.

The rouge flew back, but disappeared in a puff of smoke as a wooden log fell in his place. Naruto could hear him snicker, the sound coming from behind his back. „Provoked much?"

„We knew a lot about Haruno..." Osamu then grinned. „But what we didn't know," He said. „was that the Jinchuuriki would be with her."

„Don't you dare do anything to him!" She turned toward him, her brows furrowing in anger. „It's me who you're after, is it not?"

Kurai stepped in. „It's debatable which one of you would be more useful." He grumbled. „But even with your strength you don't stand a chance against us."

„Don't underestimate me." She gave him a warning glare. „You might regret it."

„I doubt it."

He charged at her with the same tanto blade he wounded her with, but Naruto cut him off before he could even get close to her. He managed to put some distance between himself and their enemies, although the blade grazed across his cheek and shoulder in the process of him doing so. He stood in front of Sakura, suddenly feeling immensely protective of her as he got into a defensive stance.

„How bad is your wound?" He asked her. „Can you fight?"

„It's bleeding, but it's just a scratch." She narrowed her eyes. „I'll kick his ass for it, don't worry about that."

„Alright, I'll get Osamu and the other guy." He muttered. „I trust you, Sakura. Try not to get killed, though."

„You too." She smiled.

They both charged at the men and got into a fist fight. Naruto fought against Dai and Osamu, evading their attacks, but having a hard time landing any of his own. He proceeded to make a few shadow clones to fight alongside him, not that it helped much, as they dissipated soon after getting hit. Sweat started to form on his forehead as he concentrated on the two men and their attacks.

Sakura, on the other hand was the aggressor against Kurai. He was a lot faster than her and able to dodge all her attacks, but she was stronger without a doubt. One good hit and it'd be easier for her to take him down. She groaned in frustration and aimed a fist for his face, but he caught it and punched her instead. She backed away from him to catch her breath, but he wouldn't let her. He grabbed her by the forearm and spun her in order to make her fly across the bar. However, she held onto him and used the momentum to bring her knees to her chest and push her feet outward to hit his stomach. He flew into a wall from the impact of her kick and breathed heavily as he coughed up blood. She dashed at him again, this time a kunai in her hand.

Their blades clashed. They exchanged blows for a few minutes and she got cuts all over her body. Soon enough she had an opening to attack, so she struck him. She managed to take a good chunk of flesh off his biceps before pulling away. The man groaned in agony and held his wounded arm, blood spurting out of it. He glared at her with a crazed look in his eye. He suddenly smirked creepily and Sakura lifted her kunai in defense, furrowing her brows at the man's actions.

„Oh, I'll get back at you for this." He said. „You're gonna pay real bad."

He retracted his tanto and made a few hand signs, activating a ninjutsu. Electricity started sparking around his palm and he reached behind him to pull out a few needles. He threw them in Sakura's direction and she managed to dodge them, but she saw the strings attached to them too late. He pulled them back and one of them hit her shoulder blade. She groaned in pain as she felt a jolt of electricity run through her body and the needle digging deep into her flesh. She managed to pull it out with her right hand, but was unable to move her left shoulder. She winced, still feeling a little electricity running through her.

„Careful." He smiled, pulling out more needles and blades. „Trust me, you don't want any more of these to hit you."

Naruto shot a glance at Sakura, who desperately tried to avoid the needles flying toward her. The blond unintentionally let his guard down and Dai punched him in the face. He fell to the ground and wiped the blood off his lip as he looked around. „_Not good_." He thought. „_At this rate, they'll wipe us out in no time_."

He got up and made a few shadow clones. One of them helping him make a rasengan while the others stalled his enemies. They all eventually dispelled and the real Naruto charged Dai with his jutsu. Caught off guard, he got hit and yelled in pain as he felt the skin on his abdomen crumble. He fell against one of the tables and groaned, not even bothering to get up.

Despite holding the attack, Naruto was too, blown off by the strength of it. He fell back, hissing as he felt sudden throbbing and a burning sensation in his right arm. He cringed and lifted his sleeve, only to see the scratches and blotches from before acting up in pain. The blond cursed, knowing it wasn't smart doing a rasengan without being properly healed beforehand.

„Shit, this is bad." He hissed as he tried covering his arm back. He knew he should've let Sakura heal him.

Osamu growled in anger at Naruto and dashed at him, full speed. The blond blocked barely any of his strikes and was practically losing this fight. He backed away a few meters, breathing heavily as blood poured from his nose and mouth.

He widened his eyes as a painful shriek came from the other side of the room. He looked up and saw Sakura leaning over in pain. Kurai was standing above her, his blade protruding through her already open wound on her abdomen. What shocked him were the electricity bolts coming from the weapon and into her body.

„Sakura!" Naruto yelled, but Osamu suddenly grabbed him and held him back from running toward her.

„Kurai, what the fuck are you doing!?" Osamu snapped. „We need her alive, dammit!"

He ignored him as he watched the rosette struggle. She gripped the knife and grunted, fighting against the pain the best she could. At last, Kurai kicked her and she fell to her knees.

„NO!" Naruto shouted, fighting against the man holding him back. „Sakura, hang in there!"

„Nngh..." She tried getting up, but in vain. She clutched her bloodied stomach in pain, trying to heal herself the best she could with the little chakra she had left. Her muscles convulsed from shock and she was shaking profusely. Her vision was becoming a blur, only hearing dim voices now. Her body had suffered immensely, draining her chakra just to keep itself going.

„SAKURA!"

„Naruto..." She whispered. It was the last thing she could do before she fell to the ground and hit her face. Her world became white, then everything faded to blackness as she finally lost consciousness.

**Continued in chapter 4...**

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**A/N:** Well, what do you think?

Hopefully, you enjoyed reading and I'd love to hear your thoughts on the current story. Do you have an idea of how this might end? You'll find out in the next chapter, but until then, review to let me know what you think!

**Translations**  
Osamu - _discipline, study (_character's strength based on genjutsu and manipulation_)  
_Dai - _large, bold (_character's strength based on taijutsu and martial arts_)  
_Kurai - _dark, ignorant (_character's strength based on ninjutsu and agility_)  
_Hana (Sakura's made up name) - _flower_


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